


Blood and Ashes

by Tetraktys



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: AU, Canon Rewrite, College, Enemies to Lovers, F/M, Force Bond (Star Wars), In Character, Kylo is a grad student and TA, Mystery, Rey is a freshman, Reylo - Freeform, Secret Society, The Force, even though this is an AU everyone is in character, several scenes from the original movies will be adapted to fit in the story
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-18
Updated: 2019-12-21
Packaged: 2020-05-13 21:12:12
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 14,613
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19259266
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tetraktys/pseuds/Tetraktys
Summary: When 18-years old Rey learned she had been accepted into prestigious Naboo University with a full scholarship, she thought she could finally move on from a life of hardship and constantly looking over her shoulder. Little did she know that things in the quiet college town are not exactly what they seem.During her first night on campus, she accidentally stumbles into a disturbing scene: a young man being tortured by an imposing masked figure. From that day forward, she plunges into a world of secret societies, power battles and mysteries. She may even learn more about herself and some strange abilities she didn’t know she possessed.The setting is an Oxford-like town. Story-wise imagine The Skulls meets A Discovery of Witches with a drop of Cruel Intentions. You can check the aesthetic of the fic in the Blood and Ashes board on my Pinterest page: Tetrakys10I may explore different couples, but this is predominantly a Reylo fic. Also, this is very much an enemies-to-lovers story, not enemies-to-friends-to-lovers.Rated explicit for future smut, sticks to mature most of the chapters.





	1. Chapter 1

 

It was a drizzly and chilly day when I arrived in Naboo for the first time. I was not used to feeling cold, where I came from it was always sunny and awfully hot. Also, it was technically still summer. I quickly put on a hoodie before stepping off the last bus that, in just ten excruciatingly long hours, had taken me to what was going to be my new home for the next five years.

Home. This concept also seemed strange to me. I’d never really felt at home at Plutt’s place, or uncle Plutt, as he liked to be called by his foster kids, particularly of the female kind. I’d never been happier than the day I’d received the letter from Naboo University. I’d worked hard to earn my ticket out of Jakku.

Hood over my head to shield me from the light rain, I’d been walking the cobblestone streets for just a few minutes when I saw Coruscant Building for the first time. I froze on the spot, looking at the medieval building in awe, only then it really hit me, I was finally here.

I slipped my hand under the hoodie to touch the pendant that meant so much to me. Its familiar round shape and its strange engraving, that had always reminded me of two wings with a sword in the middle, served to calm my racing heart immediately. In the past six years, since the day I had accidentally found a connection between the only family heirloom I had and the building in front of me, I’d had one single goal, make it here. In this place I would finally find the answers I’d been looking for my whole life.

I took a big breath and made my way towards the tall heavy doors. There were no gates to separate the university from the surrounding buildings, Naboo was very much a college town. I had studied enough about the place to know that when the university had been founded, 733 years ago, it consisted of one single building, surrounded by woods and fields. The town had slowly been erected during the years to facilitate students and scholars’ day-to-day lives. As the university grew, the town did the same. Nowadays, 65% of Naboo’s population was employed by the university, which expanded inside the town as a living organ, like its own heart and blood vessels.

Passing under a tall archway, I found myself in the campus quad. The college complex here developed in a quadrangular form, buildings surrounded me at all sides, and I wasn’t sure of where I was supposed to go. There were several people roaming around, but not as many as I would have expected. I was looking around a little lost when I felt someone tapping on my shoulder.

“Hi!” said a quirky voice at my back. I turned around to find a short smiling girl with blonde ponytails holding a clipboard. “My name is Bethany and I’m here to help. I’m going to show you where your dorm is and where to register for your classes. You are a little late, most students have already settled in. No worries as long as you register by 8pm you’re going to be fine. But, wait, are you a new student? Of course you are a new student! What’s your name?”

I was both surprised and impressed by her ability of talking so fast without coming up for air.

“Rey Andrews” I replied a little nervous. “What do you mean by register by 8pm?”

“Oh, you know… all the best clubs fill in their spots by the first day,” she said checking a long list of names. “What are you into? Tennis? Golf? Journalism? Debate? We have everything here. Rey Andrews… here you are, follow me.”

I took a mental sigh of relief, I had no intention of joining any club at this point. I had no money or family connections, to make it here I had to partake in all kind of extracurricular activities, excellent grades were not enough, but none of those really mattered to me, they were just a mean to an end. What I really liked… well, let’s just say I didn’t think there was a club for that here.  

Bethany led me across the quad to the big building at the opposite side. Every time we passed anything she thought could be of interest to me, she stopped to explain in detail. She explained that Coruscant was the oldest building, used for hosting the most popular courses and official functions. She was acting extremely zealous and I could tell it was the first time she had been hired as a SA, student ambassador. This was important to her, and she wanted to do a good job. How did I know, I had no idea, just a hunch. She showed me to the reception desk where a very bored admin officer checked my name off a list, added me to a course register and handed me a meal card.

Afterwards Bethany pointed to the common dining hall and local library.

“This is just a small one, of course” she added matter-of-factly, “you probably know that the main library is Tython Library, a few blocks away.”

“I heard about it.”

“It’s amazing, you’ll see. No other university library can compare. Here we are, these are the dorms. This area of the college has gone through many renovations throughout the years,” she said leading the way into the building. “You can tell it’s not really thirteen century interior by the state-of-the-art modern plumbing and so on, still the aesthetic was mostly preserved. It’s the same in every dorm.”

“Are there more dorms in the university?”

“Well, yes, of course,” she replied with an eager tone, “these are just the freshmen and senior freshmen dorms. Sophisters and senior sophisters - aka third and fourth year students - live in Lothal building, that’s where I moved a few days ago. Then Dantooine is for grand seniors, a little pretentious as a title I know, but that’s what fifth year students are called. Then there is a whole separate building for post-grads, and staffs usually live in their own private accommodations around town. Of course, some students can also choose to get their own place, but that’s pretty rare. Campus life is as much part of the whole college experience, and we don’t have curfews or absurd things like that. Also, rooms are pretty great.”

We stopped in front of room 325 and when she opened the door I understood exactly what she meant. It was huge, at least for my standards, I’d never had a space that was just mine before. Everything was made by some type of sturdy dark wood, from the bed to the desk and a big wardrobe and chest of drawers that I was never going to be able to fill in one hundred years. There was also an en-suite bathroom that even fit a bathtub. She had been right to say that, while everything looked new and in perfect condition, the antique style typical of the whole university had been somewhat preserved.

“I know, it’s small…”she said sighing, “but believe me, the bed is really comfortable.” I looked at her surprised, “and I know there’s not much space for clothes but… hey where is your luggage?”

“It’s here,” I replied, pointing at the big travel backpack I’d been carrying over my shoulders during the whole tour. “I don’t need much.” I didn’t own much in the first place, and I’d sold pretty much anything I didn’t want to carry with me.

“Wow… a minimalist…” she looked at me oddly. “Well, okay, if you need to buy anything, you can find any shop you may need in town. Here is a map,” she added handing me a folded piece of paper, “your keys, and you know where the dining hall is now. Dinner is between 6-8pm, if you go now you could still make it. That’s all from me, hope this was useful and please remember to rate me on the SA page.”

I thanked her, assuring I would give her a five stars review, and said goodbye. As soon as she left, I locked the door an threw myself on the bed. I was so tired. It had taken me almost two days and four busses to get here. I hadn’t slept in a bed in what felt like ages, and this one was particularly comfortable. I could easily fall asleep in a matter of seconds.

But I was a mess, I needed a shower and I wasn’t going to pass on my first free meal. I hoped the cafeteria here was better than the one from Jakku’s High. Anyway, food could never be worse than what we got at Plutt’s place.

After a quick stop at the toilet, I grabbed map, keys and rushed towards the cafeteria.

 

 

* * *

 

 

The dining hall looked like something out of a novel. High archway ceiling and wooden walls covered in ancient portraits surrounded a spacious hall where, at three long parallel tables with benches, sat dozens of chatty students. At the very end of the room there was a fourth table that must have been for faculty only.

Walking between the tables to reach the buffet I could capture bits and pieces of conversations.

“Hey man, did you watch the game last night?”

“I love your nail polish, what shade of green is it?”

“My vacation was so boring this year, I had to travel with my parents, I’m almost relieved to be back.”

Everything sounded extremely normal but also foreign to my ears. I’d never had a real friend growing up. Well, there had been a few people I’d been closer to, but I was always so focused on my goals, that I never really let anyone in.

I grabbed a plate and waited in line behind two guys.

“This room I’ve been given is smaller than my closet at home, I can’t wait to be tapped…”

“Shhhhh” the other guy interrupted, looking around inconspicuously. “Shut up! You know we can’t talk about it.”

“Oh right… whatever. But you know everyone knows, they just pretend not to.”

This was a strange conversation and it kinda piqued my curiosity. What were they talking about? Before I had time to try to figure it out, it was my turn, and I filled my plate with meat, potatoes, veggies… anything that could fit, I was starving. By the time I was done, those guys had disappeared in the crowd and I had to figure out where to sit.

It felt a little unnerving walking between tables looking for a place to sit, it was clear that most people knew each other already. I gave myself a mental push and took the first free seat I found.

“Look,” I heard a tiny girl on my left say, “you can’t use Markus in the dungeon, he is too big, he would never fit easily. You need a smaller character.”

“But a tank is the only way to move forward, there are too many hungry ghosts, what would you do? It’s impossible to fight,” the girl sitting in front of her replied.

“You have to use Syberia, she’s the fastest.”

“But if she’s trapped, it’s the end. A sniper is useless in that environment.”

“Still better than a heavy tank.”

“I wouldn’t bet on it.”

“I always use Teslan on that level,” I replied aloud without even realising.

They both turned towards me in surprise.

“Oh… I’m sorry… I didn’t mean to intrude… it’s just that I’ve played that level several times and Teslan is the best character without a doubt and… I’m sorry.” I was feeling slightly mortified.

“He is a stealthy ninja assassin…” the girl at my left replied pensive, “he would sneak around without alerting anyone and, if caught, he would be able to fight in close quarters. I think you might be absolutely right.” She added with a smile.

“I agree,” replied the other girl. “Hi, my name is Paige, and this is my sister Rose.”

“Hi, I’m Rey.”

“So… have you been playing Last One Standing for a long time?” Rose asked.

“A couple of years,” I said, relieved they looked so friendly.

“That’s great!” her eyes were shining with enthusiasm, “we really need someone expert to give us good pointers, we just started and it’s such a boys club!”

“With pleasure,” I replied surprised but delighted. “I never thought I would find other gamers here because… well…”

“Because it’s a school for entitled rich assholes?” replied Paige with a smirk. “You would be right, but there are also a few really cool people, you’ll see.”

“You have no idea how nervous I’ve been since I knew I’d been accepted,” said Rose earnestly, “I still am, and I have my sister here. We are both on partial scholarship, so you can imagine this is not exactly our scene. I wouldn’t know what to do if I were alone.”

“Hey,” Paige interrupted her, “I was alone last year, if I made it, you could have done it too. You’ll see, this place is not as scary as it seems.”

“I’m glad to hear you say that,” I replied, “I’ve never been in a place like this before. I’m on full scholarship so this is definitely not the crowd I’m used to.”

“Full scholarship?!” Rose exclaimed with a mouth full of beef. She quickly swallowed before chocking, “It’s incredibly rare, I heard they give maybe one or two of these every few years… you must be a genius!”

I felt myself blush, I wasn’t good with compliments. “Hardly, I just studied a lot. It was the only way for someone like me to get into a place like this.” It hadn’t been my plan to publicise my poor background, but something told me that I could trust these two girls. “I would have never been able to afford this school otherwise. I’ve been as nervous as you Rose, for this reason. I’m not used to any of this, and it still doesn’t feel 100% real to me. The first moment I stepped into my new room, for example, I thought that it was huge, imagine how mortified I felt when the SA said that it was actually really small. I’ve never had my own bedroom before, it feels like a mansion to me.”

“Oh, I totally understand you,” Rose replied, “we used to share a room when we lived at home. When Paige left for college last year it was the first time I’d had it all to myself. I can’t hide that I enjoyed it quite a bit.”

“Hey!” Paige said in mock offense. “But it’s true, I liked having my own place during my first year. This time I’ve been quite unlucky though, apparently the girl next door likes to practice her ukulele at 2am and, believe me, she’s not that good.”

“Ugh… you should talk to her… It’s going to be awkward.”

“Or maybe you could change room?” I asked.

“Ah, I wish! But the admins here are as nice and accommodating as hellhounds. There’s no way.”

“I heard two guys talking about it though. Apparently one of the two was waiting to be tapped to change his room, whatever that means.”

They both froze at my words, looking at each other nervously.

“What? What did I say? What does tapping mea…”

“Shhhh” Paige interrupted me, looking around to see if anyone was listening to our conversation. “Don’t say another word, it’s dangerous. Come.”

They both stood up. Luckily, I was almost done eating, so I followed them quickly.

We rushed out of the dining hall and didn’t stop until we got to a bench in a remote area of the quad.

“What do you know about The First Order?” Paige asked as soon as she confirmed no one else was around.

“First… what? Never heard of it in my life.”

“It’s the university’s own secret society, and not a good one.”

“What do you mean?” I asked surprised, and eager to know more.

“You think most people here belong to reach and powerful families? Well, only the richest and most powerful get invited or, as that guy said, tapped, to join TFO. They live in their own building close to the library, you’ll see, it’s the shiniest and most luxurious in the whole town, and they run everything here, from academic and sport results to whatever happens in town, and possibly even outside of it. They have power over everything.”

“This is… crazy. Does the dean know? Why would everyone accept this situation?”

“Well, the dean is just a patsy really, everything is run by the school board and…”

“Guess who sits on the board,” Rose added.

“I understand… but still, people should protest.”

“People disappear when they do. Last year a student commented loudly that another guy on his same course had had a high mark on his test only because he was probably a member of TFO. The next day we were notified that he’d left his studies and gone back home during the night.”

“Just like that?” I asked shocked.

“Just like that,” Paige replied nodding, “no one has heard from him ever since. His friends told his number had been disconnected.”

This was absolutely crazy and incredibly scary… I’d worked so hard to get here, I didn’t need to be involved in this kind of drama. But there was a part of me that knew this wasn’t right. It was the same part that always pushed me to meddle when I saw my younger foster brothers get bullied or Plutt being too friendly with some of the girls. I never seemed to be able to mind my own business in these situations.

“So, you see why you should not repeat anything you might hear about the Order. It’s too dangerous. And usually they won’t bother with you unless they see you as a threat or have some sort of grudge towards you.”

“I understand” I said seriously, “thank you for telling me, I’ll be sure to stay way out of it.”

Paige nodded, and she and Rose got up. “Still, don’t let this ruin your first week here. Why don’t you come to my room to play with us at LOS Saturday evening?”

“Ehm… maybe my room is better,” Rose said jokingly, “no annoying ukulele.”

“I’d love to,” I replied with a smile. We exchanged phone numbers and I watched them walk back to the dorms while I stayed on the bench, I had a lot to think about. A secret society… it sounded crazy but not impossible. I knew I said I would stay away, but what if it was connected somehow to the answers I’d been looking for? I needed to learn more.

My pendant, the only thing I’d had with me since I was little, it was no doubt the only thing that could connect me to my family. I had no idea what it meant, I’d always wondered and spent sleepless nights looking at it, picturing my parents, imagining they were royalty with their own royal crest, that they had lost me somehow, and would find me and rescue me from my miserable life. That we would be together again one day.

Dreams of an innocent child. It’d been a long time since I stopped picturing this kind of happy fairytale. But one day, I must have been thirteen, while I was in my school library looking up information about an old poet for an assignment, I ended up learning about Naboo University, the place where she had studied. While I was looking at pictures of the place to add to my essay, I found it. It was my pendant, at least it was an image with the same figure. Apparently, it was a symbol connected to the university, but I hadn’t been able to figure out how it was connected and what it meant. It was all very mysterious.

And what was more mysterious then a secret society? Could it be that maybe my parents had been members?

I felt a shiver of excitement run through me, I wanted… no, I needed to learn more about the Order. But what could I do? Apparently it was forbidden to even name it, and I couldn’t risk to be kicked out after everything I’d been through to get here. I felt it inside me that I was supposed to be here. I was exactly where I belonged.

I took the map out of my pocket, a quick stroll around town was nothing suspicious. Paige hadn’t said how this mysterious building where the members of this secret society lived was called, or where exactly it was located, just that it was close to the main library.

I found Tython Library on the map and studied my options, the quickest way to get there was to cross a small part of the woods at the back of Coruscant, easy enough. I would go, take a look around just to get an idea of the place and get back soon. What could go wrong?

 

* * *

 

 

In retrospect it hadn’t been a great idea. I’d been walking for about twenty minutes when I finally admitted to myself that I was lost. I was supposed to cross only the edge of the forest but, at some point, I must have taken a wrong turn, because it was getting thicker and deeper the further I walked.

I stopped and looked around trying to get my bearings. Tall, ancient-looking trees surrounded me at all sides, the moonlight was bright enough to help me watch my steps, but I couldn’t see much further than a couple of meters.

I was just about to call it quits, turn around and try to make my way back to the dorms, when I heard muffled voices coming from somewhere close by.

I froze on the spot. Who in their right mind would take a stroll in a dark forest at this time of the night? Well, apart from me of course. Nothing good would come by sticking around, I should leave immediately. A new sound came to my ears, this time I could tell there was someone struggling, grunting, trying to grasp for air. Could I, in good conscience, leave while ignoring the fact that _maybe_ someone was feeling ill a few meters from me, and that there was no one else to give them help?

I was going to check the situation, but I was not stupid, I was going to do it quietly. Raising the hood of my black hoodie over my head, I tried to channel my inner ninja-stealth, that I was sure years of playing videogames and avoiding bully kids in my neighbourhood had granted me, and merged into the shadows.  

I’d walked just a few steps when I found myself at the edges of a clearing. Hiding behind a big trunk I watched, eyes wide open, the scene in front of me.

A guy, probably just a few years older than me, was being pined to a tree by a big dark figure. This man, monster… whatever he was, I could only see his back, was grabbing the boy by his throat, talking to him in a threatening tone.

“Where is it?”

The creature’s voice was calm, a seemingly bored tone that barely hid a cold rage.

“The Resistance will not be intimidated,” the young man managed to reply, while struggling to breath.

“Where is it?” the dark figured said again, completely ignoring his words.

The guy was probably going to be strangled to death if I didn’t do something right now. But what could I do? I wasn’t short, I was quite average in high and build for a girl my age, but that man… he was huge, I would never be able to push him off the other guy. There was only one option: create a diversion.

“You have no idea, do you?” I heard the masked man say.

I took a long branch that was lying on the ground next to my foot, and threw it away, hitting the trunk of a tree a couple of meters away. The noise was exactly the distraction I was hoping for. The man turned immediately, and I was able to take a good look at him for the first time. He was wearing a scary black mask with metal rims around a dark visor, where his eyes were supposed to be. He was also dressed in black from head to toes, in what looked to be something in between a cloak and a very long coat, a hood over his head. He looked fearsome and striking at the same time.

For the second time that night I realised I hadn’t made the smartest choice, because now that evil creature’s attention was completely focused on finding the source of the noise, scanning the clearing with that black emotionless face.

“Who’s there?” he said calmly, taking a few steps towards the centre of the clearing.

In stealth-mode, slowly but steadily, I made my way towards the other guy, who had fallen to the ground when the hold on his neck had been lifted, and was now trying to get back to his feet.

 When I reached him, I put my arm around his shoulders to help him stand up. He raised his eyes to mine, worried at first, but incredibly surprised once he saw me. Despite the bruises on his face, I could tell he was a good-looking guy, chocolate eyes and caramel skin, he looked like he could be a popular jock.

I raised my index finger to my nose, in the universal sign to keep quiet, and gestured him to follow me. We had barely made a few steps, just enough to reach the shadow offered by the first trees surrounding the edge of the clearing, that I caught a movement with the corner of my eye. I turned, and instinctively raised my hands to protect me, what I saw left me completely speechless.

The branch I had thrown a few minutes earlier, was standing mid-air, half a meter from my face. How was that even possible? I was shocked and fascinated at the same time. As soon as I lowered my hands to take a better look, the branch fell to the floor. What the h… did I do that?

I felt the guy grab me by the arm, shouting “Run!”

I did it without thinking it twice. I run like my life depended on it, which was probably true. I followed the boy who clearly wasn’t lost and knew exactly how to leave the forest and make it back to campus. We made it out of the forest in just a few minutes, and I saw the familiar shape of Coruscant building. I knew I could find my way alone now. It was time to take off, I’d already exposed myself too much. I was sure the masked man hadn’t seen me clearly, but this guy… he had seen my face. I had no idea what was going on here and who these people were, but I knew I wanted nothing to do with it.

“Hey… wait!” I heard the boy shout, when he noticed I was running off on my own.

I ignored him and sped up towards the freshman dorms, I didn’t stop until I made it to my room.

Locking the door behind me, I went immediately to the window, which overlooked the forest. Heart in my throat I scanned the vast plain that extended to the edge of the forest, looking for I didn’t know what.

After a few moments, I saw him.

Between two trees, at the closest side of the forest, the masked man emerged from the shadows and I watched his tall figure lighted by the moonlight. I could tell he was walking towards the city centre, where I was supposed to go if I hadn’t lost my way. Was he part of that mysterious secret society?

He suddenly stopped and turned towards Coruscant, as if some kind of force had made him feel my eyes on him. I saw him scanning the dorms building and, for one single time-stopping moment, he looked towards me. I didn’t know how, but I was sure that despite the darkness of my room, all that distance, and his mask, our eyes had met, and I felt a shiver run down my spine.

I immediately threw myself to the floor, away from the window. Heart in my throat I counted the seconds, frightened the masked man would burst through my door any minute. I knew it was crazy, there was no way he could have seen me from such a distance, but I also knew that branches couldn’t levitate mid-air, and that that particular one had fallen as soon as I had moved my hands, almost as if I’d been controlling it somehow.

I felt like laughing hysterically. Secret societies, flying objects, masked torturers… I was losing my mind.

I got up and went back to the window. The moonlight illuminated the deserted plain and a light breeze moved the leaves on the trees at the edge of the forest. The night was so calm, so serene, that everything that had happened in the past couple of hours felt almost like a dream. No one was around.

The masked man had disappeared.


	2. Chapter 2

_I was running breathlessly, between trees and bushes, one after the other, completely lost. I couldn’t recognise where I was, I couldn’t find my way. Tripping on a root, I fell to the ground._

_Exhausted, hands and knees hurting, I heard that voice again._

_“Come here. I’m waiting for you, sweetheart.”_

_I wanted to, with all my heart. I’d done nothing else than try to find them since I was a child._

_I tried to get back on my feet, but a tall, dark shadow stood in front of me, hovering over me. It felt both scary and incredibly familiar at once._

_Soon, the shadow started to get the shape of a big man dressed completely in black. But it was wrong, out-of-focus, I tried to discern his features, but it was impossible._

_Then I saw them._

_A pair of deep, dark eyes that seemed to hide so much… hurt, rage, sorrow, longing._

_They took my breath away._

_Falling in the depth of his stare, I woke up._

 

I was laying in my new bed, completely drenched in sweat, my heart beating fast.

The dream… it wasn’t new. I’d heard that voice in my head since I first learned about Naboo. And after what happened the other day I could understand the forest scenario, maybe even the dark figure. But those eyes… I’d never seen them before, I would remember.

Kicking the blanket off me, I slowly got up. Looking out of the window I noticed it was barely dawn, but there was no way I would be able to fall asleep again, it was the first day of classes.

My head was still a bit foggy, a shower was exactly what I needed to get the remnants of the dream off me. Removing the shorts and camisole I always used as a pyjama, and my underwear, I walked naked towards the bathroom.

This, more than anything, felt like a luxury to me. Having always shared the bathroom with at least other six people meant having to undress, wash, and get dressed at top speed every morning.

The first stream of water was cold and woke me up immediately. It soon got warmer, and I spent ten amazingly pleasant minutes relaxing, while thinking about my next steps.

I had spent the whole previous day locked up in my room, trying to figure out how safe it was to leave it, and if either one of the two men from the wood would be able to recognise me. By dinner time I was starving and decided it didn’t matter. I wanted to learn more about The First Order, but at this point I couldn’t believe my parents could’ve been part of such an evil organization. I didn’t remember anything about them, but I knew it in my bones: if I wasn’t evil, they couldn’t be either.

However, that boy had named something called The Resistance, and that was definitely interesting. While Paige was telling me about TFO, I couldn’t help but wonder how was it possible that no one was standing against them. A second secret society made sense, and I wanted in. Not only because they were my best chance at finding out the truth, but also because I couldn’t stand injustice.

For the hundredth time I cursed myself for not having followed that boy after our escape, how was I ever going to find him? For now I couldn’t do anything except attend classes and keep my ears open for any hint could pass my way.

I got dressed in my usual attire, jeans and t-shirt. I didn’t have the means to homologate with the rest of the college population, no point in even trying. I slipped on my boots and headed to the dining hall.

 

* * *

 

 

The cafeteria was semi-deserted that early in the morning, there was just me and a couple of older guys. I poured some milk in a bowl with cereal, grabbed a banana and sat at one of the tables. Not even one minute later, the two guys set at each side of me, way closer than needed, being the bench completely empty, and I instantly went on alert mode.

“Hi”, said one with a sleazy smile. “What’s your name?”

I ignored him and kept eating. I wanted to make friends, but I wasn’t that desperate. I figured they were drunk and just now coming back after a night out.

“What, the cat got your tongue?”

“No worries,” said the second one, “we could have fun, many things can be done without talking.” He laid a hand on my knee and I stiffened.

 _That_ was too much.

I grabbed my bowl of milk and threw it over his head.

“What the…” he cried out, jumping on his feet.

The other guy tried to grab my arm and I hit his hand with my tray, hearing him crying out in pain.

Jumping on the other side of the bench I said, “don’t ever try to touch me again,” and turned to leave the room, but I bumped into another guy standing at my back.

“I’m sorry,” he said raising his hands in a yielding gesture, “I saw those two being assholes and I was coming to help, but you can clearly take care of yourself,” he added a little embarrassed.

“Oh…” I replied surprised, but also a little touched. “Well… thank you?”

“Name’s Finn,” he said offering his hand, which I shook with mine, “I’m Rey.”

He gave me a big smile, his teeth pearl white against his ebony skin.

“And what do you do Rey, when you’re not battling using kitchen utensils?”

I chuckled at his words, “I’m a freshman.”

“Ah, me too! I’m a little nervous for the first day, hence coming here at this ungodly hour.”

“You’re back Stevens” said a severe voice at my back, and I turned around to see a very tall older girl, with short blonde hair and cold blue eyes. She was standing close to the two idiots I’d just dealt with, who were looking at her with a sort of revering respect, and I understood why they hadn’t retaliated.

We looked around and noticed a few more people coming in the room, the place would soon start to get crowded, whatever confrontation had to be postponed.

“The First Order doesn’t forget,” she said between her teeth, before heading out, pushing Finn out of the way, the two drunk idiots following her.

I felt like jumping on the spot at her words. Was she in The First Order? If there was such animosity between her and Finn it meant…

“Are you in The Resistance?” I uttered excited.

“What…” he replied shook, “I don’t know what you mean.”

“Yes, you do!” He was too nervous, it was clear he was hiding something. “What I don’t understand, though, is how you could’ve already made enemies, the academic year starts today. Did you move in early? How were you recruited? I’d like to join you guys.”

He grabbed my hand and tried to drag me out of the room.

“What are you doing?”

“We can’t discuss these things here.”

“I know how to walk without you holding my hand,” I said removing it from his grasp.

“Sorry,” he said once we got to an empty corridor, “but you can’t say these things around other people, it’s dangerous.”

“I’m starting to believe it,” I replied, thinking about the masked man with a penchant for torture. “So?” I asked crossing my arms, waiting for his reply.

“Y-yes, I’m in The Resistance. D-Definitely.”

“Good. How?”

“I attended Naboo University two years ago, had a bad run in with The Order early in the year and left college. I spent the whole time since then without knowing what to do with my life, so I decided to give NU another go.”

“Oh… it must not have been easy…” they must have done something terrible to him to push him to drop out.

“You have no idea…” he said with sorrow in his eyes, “they’re dangerous Rey, you have to believe me. You need to stay away from them.”

“I can’t, I have questions. Please, it’s important to me... I’ve spent my whole life searching for answers, and this feels right.” I felt it in my bones. “You said it yourself, I can take care of myself.”

“I want to help you Rey, but I just got back.”

“Just tell me how to get in.”

“You need to be tapped, I can’t explain, it’s always different. I can only tell you it happens the first weekend of term, so keep an eye out for anything strange going on this weekend.”

“Thank you, Finn.” I replied sincerely.

He nodded, “I only hope you won’t come to regret this,” he added in a sombre tone.

 

 

* * *

 

 

I took my seat in the middle row of my first class ever at Naboo University: Physics 101. I loved science, engineering, math… anything to do with understanding how the world worked.  

The room filled pretty fast, there were around two hundred people in the big auditorium. I knew this was a popular class, compulsory for anyone who wanted to take a scientific major. Instead of having smaller groups, it seemed that everything in the Physics department was led by its lead, a certain Professor Snoke. He must’ve been quite powerful in NU, and it was probably safe to not get on his bad side.

A few minutes later, a man took the stage, he seemed… unimpressive actually. Ancient-looking, his head bald, and beady eyes in a round, wrinkled face. I thought he looked quite small and frail at first, but when he started talking you could tell there was impressive strength in his attitude and demeanour.

“Welcome to Physics 101, I am Professor Snoke. In this course, you will learn the basic foundations of nature, you will learn how reality is shaped in space and time and you will push the boundaries of what you assumed you knew of the world surrounding you.”

The way he spoke… was convincing, it made you want to learn more, to grasp the knowledge he was promising.

“While I am the module lead, you will see me rarely, as I focus more on advanced courses. My teaching assistant, soon-to-be Dr Solo, is going to take good care of you.”

At those words a new man entered the room.

He was tall, his big shoulders and solid body didn’t hint academic work at all. The air he projected was of cold regality, and there was a strength and assuredness in his movements that rivalled the older man’s. He had amazingly-looking shoulder-length black hair, they looked so thick and soft that I had the random, wild thought of wanting to know how they felt if I ran my fingers through them.

When he turned towards the students, scanning the crowd like looking for something, or someone, I could tell he had striking features. He was handsome in a non-conventional way, his nose was too big, and his lips too full, but they looked incredibly soft, and again I surprised myself wondering how they tasted like.

But nothing, nothing in him surprised me as much as what I saw when our gazes met.

Hurt, rage, sorrow, longing… I could see everything in the intense depths of his big dark eyes, and I couldn’t look away even if I wanted to. I knew those eyes, I’d seen them before.

Those were the eyes from my dream.


	3. Chapter 3

I was walking down the hallway after my last lecture of the day when I felt someone tapping on my shoulder.

“Hey Rey,” Rose warmly smiled at me, “how are you doing? I waved at you in class but you didn’t see me. I didn’t know you were also interested in mechanics.”

“Hi Rose,” I replied pleasantly surprised, “I’m sorry, I must have had my head in the clouds. And yes, I’m very much a fan of mechanics, I didn’t know there were many people interested in the subject.”

“Well… the truth is they aren’t. My sister told me that this is considered an easy class because the lecturer is one year away from retirement and can’t be bothered anymore. He always gives a pretty standard basic test at the end of the course, so people see this as a way to get some easy credits in applied science.”

She shook her head a little dejected.

“What a bummer,” I said genuinely displeased, “I had great expectations from this module, I’ve been around engines my whole life.”

“Really?” she replied excited, “me too! My father is a mechanic, well… he was, he owns a couple of shops now so he mostly oversees them. But my sister and I used to help him all the time growing up.”

“That must have been amazing, help out in your family’s business” I said sincerely. “I did the same but as a part-time job during high-school.”

Also, there was something else I did to top up my wages, but it wasn’t technically legal and I wasn’t going to get into it right then, in the middle of a busy hallway with a girl that I liked but had just met.

“Well, apparently there used to be a mechanics lab, but it was shut down a while ago. The people who lead it are still around though, I ran into them the day I moved. An old, grumpy man and a very big, hairy guy, impossible not to notice them.”

“What do they do here if they don’t lead the lab anymore?” I would have really loved to join something like that.

“No idea, but it would be great if they got it running again.”

We kept talking while walking to the dining hall. She couldn’t stay for dinner, but she asked me to stop to her room afterwards and play LoS together. I was a little surprised since we’d already made plans to play together that weekend, but I liked this girl and really wanted to make friends, so I accepted and agreed to meet her at 9pm.

 

* * *

 

 

That was definitely not what I was expecting.

As soon as the door closed I knew that Rose and I we were not going to play videogames. Paige was there too, but she wasn’t the only unexpected addition. The guy, the one from the wood, was standing in the middle of the room, and came up to me offering his hand.

“Rey,” he said with a smile, “you have no idea how happy I am to see you again.”

I was surprised, definitely taken aback by the situation and didn’t know what to do. I’d previously decided I wanted to try to find the guy, but I didn’t expect him to actually track me down. And definitely didn’t expect Rose to orchestrate all this.

“I’m sorry,” he said lowering his hand, “you might have thousands of questions. I don’t want to scare you off,” he looked at Paige like asking her for help.

“Rey,” Paige said stepping up, “this is Poe.”

“Poe Dameron,” he added.

“Apparently you guys had an interesting meeting in the woods. You’re not into trouble don’t worry, we just want to talk to you.”

“And recruit you.”

“Seriously Poe? We said we would take things slowly,” Paige said annoyed.

“I know, but tapping is in two days, we don’t have time to waste.”

“Hold on,” I said once I finally got a hold of my thoughts, “what the hell are you talking about and who are you people?”

“We are The Resistance Alliance,” Poe said solemn.

“I told you about The First Order,” Paige continued, “when you asked why no one was fighting them, well… I omitted a few things. There is another secret society in this school, our only goal is to fight TFO with any means possible, they have too much power.”

“And not only in Naboo,” Poe added, “they infiltrate in any branch of our government. Many positions of power are either occupied or controlled by someone belonging to the order.”

“Wait…” I said sitting down, very confused by these new revelations. “Are you saying that you guys are trying to fight a conspiracy of such a big scale… how? Here with a bunch of college kids?”

“Of course not,” Poe replied. “I mean… it’s not just that. We also have high-level people backing us. But everything starts here, in Naboo. The issue is more complicated than you can imagine, and we can’t tell you anything else unless you join us.”

“I really want to know more about this, about everything. But I’m not sure I’m ready to commit to such a cause, I mean… fight against a world-level organisation? I’m barely 18, I just started my first year of college, this is way bigger than me.” I also had my own agenda, but didn’t say it aloud. “And why would you even want me to join you guys? I have no connections or family to back me up.”

“Oh please, we are not like the Order, we don’t care about these things,” Poe replied dismissively, “but in this specific case they probably wouldn’t care either.”

I looked at him confused.

“You’re _force_ sensitive, Rey.”

“I’m… what?”

“The thing you did in the wood? You stopped a branch mid-air.”

“Oh…” so it had really been me. I had felt it, but couldn’t even begin to comprehend it.

“Was that the first time you did something like that?”

“Yes, of course. It completely freaked me out.”

“It doesn’t surprise me, not the freak out, I mean that too. I’m talking about the fact that it was your first time.”

“Why…?”

“This place, Naboo, is more than what it seems. More than a university town. But we’ll get into that if you agree to join us.”

I was feeling lost, I needed answers, but I didn’t know if the answers they were willing to give me were the ones I was looking for.

“Look Rey,” Rose started talking for the first time since I’d stepped into her room. “I know this feels crazy, I completely understand, I’m a freshman like you, but I had my sister to talk me into this. You must be feeling overwhelmed. Why don’t you take a few days to think about it?”

“She can’t,” Poe immediately replied. “I’m sorry Rey,” he said looking at me apologetically, “but if the Order gets its hands on you… let’s just say they would either recruit you or make it so you would never be able to stand against them.”

He paused to let the statement sink in.

“They can never know about you and your abilities. What happened in the forest… now they already know that there is a force-sensitive student in town. _He_ knows… and _he_ is the worst person possible to have this knowledge.”

“ _He_ … you mean… that monster.”

Paige chuckled lightly, “monster is a good description, but no… Kylo Ren is as human as any of us, but extremely more dangerous.”

Kylo Ren… the creature had a name.

“You saw what he was doing to me,” Poe said.

“He was strangling you.”

“With his mind,” he added, and I looked at him incredulous. “Yes, Rey, his hands were not touching me.”

“How… how is that even possible?”

“Kylo Ren is the strongest _force_ sensitive member of the Order. He leads them all, the Knights of Ren. Yes I know…” he continued noticing my look of disbelief, “TFO is kinda into titles and hierarchy.”

“And you guys are not?”

“Not as much. At least we don’t have stupid names and we don’t risk physical punishments if we disobey our seniors,” Paige replied, an amused glint in her eyes.

“And you’re really lucky this is the case, otherwise considering how insolent you’re always with me, if this was TFO you’d probably be dead.”

They all laughed, and they seemed so normal. I’d felt I could trust Paige and Rose since the moment I’d met them, and even Poe… he looked and sounded like someone fighting for justice. I could tell his heart was in the right place.

“I’m happy Finn told you about me, I heard you naming The Resistance in the wood, and when I asked him to introduce me to you he sounded so against it. I’m happy he changed his mind.”

Poe looked at me confused, “Finn? I found you by looking at the pictures of the new students admitted this year. There’s no Finn in the Resistance, Rey.”

“What do you mean? He told me himself, do you know every member of the Resistance? And by name?”

“Every member in Naboo, yes. Definitely all the student ones. I’m in my fifth year.”

“He’s kinda our “supervisor”,” Paige said gesturing at the word supervisor.

“Not kinda, I really am,” then turning towards me he added, “this Finn told you he was in the Resistance?”

“Yes, I mean… I figured it out. He was quarrelling with some people from the Order.”

They looked at each other nervously, “Rey, he’s not one of ours. He must’ve been in the Order. Damn… this means they already know about you!”

“Wait…” I said raising my hands, “let’s not jump to conclusions. You said that if they knew about me they would either recruit me or get rid of me. Nothing has happened so far, and Paige you told me how fast they can act.”

“We have to find him,” she nodded. “Did he tell you anything else? What did you ask him?”

“I wanted to know how to get in contact with you guys, he told me the tapping ceremony is happening this weekend but he couldn’t give me any more details.”

“The Order has an initiation ceremony, we don't, we don’t really care about these things.” Poe walked around the room, a hand in his wild, wavy hair. “We have to interrogate him. He could lead us to the location of the next ceremony. Rey, I know this is a lot to take in in one evening, but we need you. You’re the only one who can identify him.”

“Is this ceremony so important?”

“Immensely. Help us with this and then we can talk again about you joining us. What do you say?”

He offered his hand again, this time I shook it without hesitation.

“Fine, I also want to know if he’s been playing me.”

I told them everything I knew about Finn, I didn’t leave the room until we’d made a plan for the following day.

 

 

* * *

 

 

“Hi Finn,” I said coming up next to him at the end of his last lecture. Paige had taken me to the admin office early that morning and we’d found him the same way Poe had found me, looking at the pictures of all first year students. It’d taken ages but now we knew his schedule, his room number and his whole background.

“Hey Rey,” he replied surprised, smiling. “How’s your first week been so far?”

“Busy, but good.”

“I know what you mean, it feels like I’m already drowning in assignments.”

“I really need a coffee before getting on with my evening study, would you like to join me?”

“Sure,” he said eager.

“Great, follow me.”

We turned a corner and, before he could figure out what was going on, I pushed him into an empty classroom. Empty but for the people I knew would be there.

“Who are you and what do you know about me,” I said pinning him to a wall. “Are you a member of the Order? Talk, now!”

“W-what? He stuttered completely confused. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. What the hell is going on?”

I kicked him in the leg so that he fell kneeling on the floor. I was just about to grab him by his shirt when Poe stopped me.

“Wait Rey, I know him!”

We found out that Finn had indeed been a member of the Order two years before, but he had quit and helped Poe escape an uncomfortable situation while doing so. He’d stayed away this whole time hoping they would forget about him, unfortunately that wasn’t the case.

“I’m sorry I lied to you Rey,” he said after we had sat and calmly talked about the situation. “I didn’t want you to judge me, I’d been in the Order for barely a month before I figured out it wasn’t for me. They are… cruel. And the level of secrecy… only the higher ups know what really goes on, and a whole bunch of people are recruited to just serve them. My family used to be rich, but they died when I was a kid, they left me money but I have no power. You can tell who doesn’t matter over there, I was destined to become one of their puppets… you’ve no idea, they all look like clones.”

“I’m sorry for kicking you in the shin” I replied a little embarrassed. “I’ve been told that I can be impulsive and violent sometimes.”

He laughed and I knew we were on good terms again. Poe asked him about the ceremony, it was clear he trusted him somehow, even if they’d met only once years ago, Finn must have really saved him from a bad situation. Considering the way I’d met him… I had a hunch Poe had a quite the skill to get himself into trouble.

“It’s going to be tomorrow,” Finn said. “A letter with date and location of the ceremony is slipped under the door of the selected people. The location usually changes, I don’t know the reason, probably to not get caught. I want to help you, really, but I have no idea how to find them, tomorrow is going to be crazy, it’s the first weekend of terms, parties everywhere. You would need to follow someone you know for sure is a new recruit.”

Poe and Paige looked at each other dejected. I sighed, I knew exactly what to do.

“I can help you again, but first I need answers.”

If I had to infiltrate The First Order, I wanted to know everything.

 

* * *

 

 

Kylo Ren walked nervously the deserted streets of Naboo in the middle of the night. The ceremony was going to be the following day. In the years he had attended, and then led, many of them, but never like this time he felt something was off. There was a disturbance in the _force_.

He thought again, for the umpteenth time, at the encounter in the forest. There was a new _force_ sensitive person in town. That kind of raw power… he’d never seen the equals before, only in himself.

He had to find this person fast, he couldn’t allow anyone to jeopardise the Great Leader’s agenda.

He had to destroy them.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this chapter has been mostly focused on dialogues, but I don't want to rush things. I feel it's important to be true to the characters and Rey is on a path of discovery of both herself and the world that surrounds her. 
> 
> Next chapter we're going to get some actual action.


	4. Chapter 4

I was running through the deserted corridors of Coruscant building, books in my hands and a slice of toast in my mouth. I was late, after having spent the best part of the night tossing and turning in bed overthinking the secrets the Resistance had shared with me.

With a final step, I stopped in front of the classroom where the first lecture of the day was currently held: Physics 101.

Swallowing the last morsel of my meagre breakfast, I looked nervously at the closed door. Ten minutes late wasn’t that big of a deal, right?! Would anyone notice if I snuck in and took a seat at the back?

Raising my hand to the doorknob, I noticed the door was slightly ajar and, stepping closer, I tried to listen to what was going on inside the room.

“What’s the difference between these two equations?” Said a calm and rather confident male voice.

No one replied and I curiously took a quick glance past the door, I’d been able to spot just the blackboard, and only for a moment, but I instantly recognised what I saw.

 

“Nothing, apparently,” the voice continued. “The math is simple and exactly the same in both cases, indeed they describe a similar concept but in different terms. The one on the left tells us that when two bodies are close enough, they experience a _force_ that attracts them towards each other.”

He paused briefly, to let the concept sink in.

“Every particle has the innate capacity to exercise this _force_ on every other particle of the universe, its extent, however, depends on the particle’s own value (mass, in this case) and the distance to the object it is exercising this _force_ on. Closer the two bodies are, stronger is the _force_ between them.”

I wanted to step in, I was captivated by this voice and its words. I opened the door a little more.

“The equation on the right refers to the electrostatic aspect of the _force_ , the meaning here is that this _force_ is attractive only if the charges have opposite signs.”

“Opposites attract,” chuckled someone in the middle row. I stepped in the room and saw the tall, imposing figure of Dr Solo.

“Not only,” he replied stoically, while scanning the whole room, “sometimes they…”

Our gazes met.

“Bond.”

We looked at each other for a few seconds too long, some heads turned around to check what he was staring at. He noticed, and quickly turned towards the blackboard, starting to add more formulas and some numbers. I immediately took a seat close by the entrance, feeling very self-conscious.

“Turn to page 394,” he said after a few minutes.

“This is the first week of classes, so I’ll be lenient this one time. But please, keep all something in mind.”

I felt like sinking further into the chair at his next few words.

“In the future, tardiness shall not be tolerated in my class.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

I was walking the cobbled streets replaying in my head what Poe and Finn had told me the previous day.

 

_"You need to find a new recruit and follow them to the place of the ceremony," Finn had said. "There's going to be a huge crowd in town, parties everywhere, but one way to recognise new members of the order is their attire. New and lower ranking members have to dress in white, from head to toe, they even have to cover their faces."_

_"We have seen their creepy uniforms many times," Paige nodded._

_"Yes, but they only receive it after the initiation. During the first ceremony recruits come in their own clothes. That's what happened my year anyway."_

_"You wouldn't happen to still have your old uniform, would you?" I asked, a plan forming in my head._

_"Well… I actually do…" he replied reluctantly._

_"Brilliant! Would you lend it to me?"_

_We spent about half an hour fighting. Finn was completely against me infiltrating the ceremony. Poe thought it was a great idea but he wanted to do it himself. Paige and Rose didn't want to be left out of any action. During the discussion I found out that the chain of command in the Resistance was slightly stricter than what they'd led me to believe at first. This kind of operation required approval from higher ranking members, approval that had very slim chances of been given considering the risks and short timeframe. Apparently, Poe was a true believer of the motto ‘it's easier to ask forgiveness than permission’._

_"Look, I’m not a member of the Resistance, I don’t have to ask anyone’s permission. Also, I’m the only one here who can identify a recruit thanks to a chance encounter I had my first night on campus. I actually don’t even need Finn’s uniform, I’m going to wear my own clothes and follow the guy myself. Except… you haven’t told me yet why this ceremony is so important! You can either support me and give me all the information I need, or you must accept the fact that I’m going into the lion’s den completely unprepared.”_

_I didn’t want to snap at these people, I liked them all, I felt we could actually become friends, but I couldn’t let anyone stand in between me and the answers I was looking for._

_“It’s mental manipulation,” Poe replied tiredly._

_“Excuse me?” I asked dumbfounded._

_“Each year they brainwash a whole cohort of new students. Imagine… these people are going to become politicians, magistrates, leaders in their own fields… imagine controlling all of them.”_

_“This is…”_

_“Terrifying,” Paige nodded, “that’s why we fight them, and this year is even worse, they acquired a weapon of some kind, we’re not sure exactly what it is but we know that this type of coercion requires an incredible amount of power. Up until now only the strongest force sensitive members were able to do it, and it required to repeat the process continuously.”_

_“That’s why I managed to escape their grip,” Finn explained, “I slowly felt like myself again and one day it was like waking up.”_

_“Rey, you have to understand this is extremely dangerous for you in particular…” Poe said, talking to me privately, “what you can do…”_

_“Yes, you already explained that to me. If they knew about me, we have no idea what they could do but, to be honest, that thing with the branch… it’s happened just once. I have no idea how to repeat it, there’s no way anyone can figure anything out.”_

_Poe looked sceptical, but in that moment Finn interrupted us, it seemed that my words had convinced him at least. He was determined to wear his old uniform and accompany me himself. Poe, Paige and Rose were going to follow us._

 

That’s why now I was following a slightly drunk freshman dressed in white. I was also wearing something appropriate for the occasion: an off-white long tunic and capri pants with boots, arm and head wraps. These were my old racing clothes.

Jakku was surrounded by desert, there wasn’t much to do there, so one of the local teens favourite activity was to participate in illegal quad races. I loved it and it was a nice way to earn some extra money. Also, I was very good at it.

We had discussed how to deal with this guy but, fortunately, Paige had some useful skills at her disposal.

Making sure he would not notice her, she slipped her hand in his back pocket and picked a card, then quickly left the scene. Once we turned the corner, the others joined us and we all looked at the very brief message:

Yavin Park, midnight.

“That really must be it! That’s TFO’s symbol,” Rose said excitedly, pointing at the black and white symbol on the other side of the page that Reminded me of a sun enclosed in a hexagon.

“It’s almost time,” Finn said, wearing his white, sort of soldier-like uniform. “We have to go.”

 

* * *

 

 

I was wearing big goggles that, combined with my head wrap, completely hid my face to the world and still granted perfect visibility.

I looked astonished at the show in front of me. A couple of hundred people, mostly dressed in white, but some in different shades of gray, moved around the dark park silently, like ghosts in the night. We followed them, mixing in the crowd until they reached the innermost area of the park, standing in front of a circular platform that was probably used for concerts and shows in the summer.

Currently something much more unsettling was going on.

Two figures were standing at each side of a pedestal. One was tall, imposing, wearing a very similar uniform to the many white that surrounded us, but in this case it was of an extremely dark gray.

The other was a man dressed in black clothes, a simple hood on his head.

What I hadn’t initially noticed though, was the monster behind them, the one from the forest.

Kylo Ren.

From the contrast between his and the many lighter uniforms, and even the ones on the two people standing closer to him, I could tell he had the highest possible rank one could get in the order. He was darker than the shadows that surrounded us at each side. He was also more fearsome.

“You’re here to become something greater than yourself,” he said in a low, deep voice, muffled by the mask covering his face. I was thinking it felt familiar when I remembered I’d heard him speak in the forest while torturing Poe.

I wanted to keep listening but we needed to figure out fast where this dangerous weapon was. At some point I felt my attention shift to the pedestal and, in particular, to the cloth-covered object on top of it. When the hooded man removed the cloth, I saw it was something beautiful.

A blue crystal, so light and limpid I could’ve sworn it was made of ice, but I knew it better. How I knew it I had no idea, but that crystal was special, it was calling me, or better, it was calling some inner part of me.

It was mine, I had to have it.

Without thinking about it, I raised my hand in its direction and the crystal started shaking on the pedestal.

Kylo Ren stopped talking and lowered his masked face towards the crystal that was shaking more and more each second that went by.

After what seemed only a moment, the crystal raised into mid-air, crossed the whole distance and flew directly into my arms.

It felt so right, its weight in my hands, its temperature on my skin, and I knew that if I could just stare into its depths I could find all the answers I was looking for.

“Rey!” Finn, whispered-yelled in my ear, and I looked up, the spell or whatever that was, broken. We were surrounded at all sides by members of the order, who were staring at us in what was probably a shocked expression hidden beneath their masks.

“Run!” Poe yelled, and we didn’t need to be told twice.

We started running without a plan, without destination, the only goal leaving that place safely.

We soon ended up separating, a hoard of members of TFO at our heels. I wanted to find my new friends but had no idea where they were, I just had to keep running. I couldn’t go towards the dorms, risking sending the Order directly to my doorsteps, so I ran in the opposite direction, with no idea of where I was going.

On a hill, apparently.

It was strange, I was tired but I was faster and more agile than I’d ever been in my whole life, I had lost my chasers with an ease that I never thought possible, and I knew that I could keep running forever. So I did just that.

I ran, and ran, until I found myself on top of a cliff, and only then I stopped.

I stopped because I wanted to jump. More than anything I’d ever wanted in my life.

A small, still sane part of me knew it was crazy. I knew there was a river down there somewhere but intentionally falling into it from that height would’ve been borderline suicidal.

However, the rest of me was 100% positive I could survive it, I would be perfectly fine.

“You’re going to hurt yourself,” said a voice at my back, and I turned around to find Kylo Ren only a few septs away from me.

I instinctively hugged the crystal closer to me.

“No _force_ sensitive individual should touch a raw Kyber crystal of such size. Especially not someone already strong with the _force._ ”

I started at him without really understanding what he was saying, in my mind one single thought, he wanted my crystal and I had to protect it.

“Who are you…” he said with curiosity in his voice, but I wasn’t sure if it was really a question.

He took a step towards me and in my fogged brain it meant only one thing, he was coming for the crystal.

Without even a second thought I jumped off the cliff.

Kylo Ren the last thing I saw before falling into nothingness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're finally getting into the proper story.  
> There's mostly been angst and mystery from the get go, but this is also a university AU so the plan is still to have both worlds merged into one, balancing lightheartedness and angst.


	5. Chapter 5

I opened my eyes to the sound of pounding water and a wet sensation at my back. I was lying down in what seemed like a shallow, rocky pond, and it took me a few seconds to focus.

Looking around in the semi-dark environment I tried to get my bearings and remember where I was and how exactly I got there. There must have been a perfectly reasonable explanation.

And then it hit me.

All those bodies clad in white, moving slowly in the dark, like spooky ghosts hunting the park.

The three imposing, masked figures on the stage and the crystal between them.

The crystal… as soon as I saw it nothing else mattered, I had to have it, take it away, keep it safe. Willing it to come to me had been enough, it had flown directly into my arms.

I sat and stared at my empty hands.

I had escaped, run without a plan, my only goal running far away from there.

And then the chase, up on that cliff, and… him.

Kylo Ren.

I knew that I should have felt scared, terrorised even, but in my foggy brain there was only mild curiosity covered by waves of protective instinct towards the crystal.

Him, on the other hand, had seemed interested, he wanted the crystal but also wanted to know who I was. I’d never been happier for wearing my racing clothes, there was no way he would be able to recognise me if we ever saw each other again, and a part of me knew that it was bound to happen sooner or later.

I got up and looked around the place, I was in a cavern of some sort, I could hear rushing water coming from somewhere and turned to find an amazing waterfall. The water was blue and shiny, reflecting on the cavern walls, the place looked almost magical. But... the opening was so high… was that really where I’d come from? Of all the absurd things that had happened to me that night, the fact that I’d jump off that cliff was the craziest. That crystal… had done something to me, not only on my mind, but also my body. I’d run for who knew how long up a steep hill without breaking a sweat, and then I’d survived such a jump and I was feeling perfectly fine.

I quickly scanned my body for any sign of injury. I was wet and dirty but didn’t have a single scratch on me. How was that even possible?

I had no idea what that crystal was and what it had done to me, but I knew I never wanted to see it again. Luckily it seemed it had gone lost following my jump into the river.

I wasn’t going to miss it.

I wondered what time it was and how long I’d been in that strange cavern, also… where the hell I was and how was I going back to the dorms.

I walked around the big, humid place touching the rocky walls, feeling for a way out. I would never be able to get back to the opening on top.

I needed to leave, and fast. That place felt too good to be true, almost like the crystal, and I didn't trust it one bit.

I'd been inspecting the area for a few minutes when I found myself right in front of the waterfall, it really was beautiful. Each drop looked like a tiny crystal and I lost myself trying to take everything in.

While I was staring at it, I saw something coming towards me from the other side and, strangely, I wasn't scared. I felt it deep inside me, it was exactly what I'd been looking for my whole life.

I stepped closer to the water and the figure did the same. At first it looked like there might’ve been two people behind that tall wall of water and my heart pounded faster in my chest, but when I stepped even closer I saw the two figures merge into one. When I raised my hand, the person behind the waterfall did the same, and when I touched the water I expected to feel their hand touching mine, but the moment my fingers got wet the image became instantly clear, and I saw my reflection staring back at me.

It was me… just me.

A wave of disappointment rushed over me. I kept looking for answers and I kept finding only myself.

I had to leave right now and, almost as if it had appeared out of nowhere, I spotted a passage I had completely missed during my exploration.

I took it and started running, wanting to put as much space between me and that place. After a short hilly corridor, I saw an opening and soon found myself in a wood.

Not a generic wood either, it was the one behind Coruscant building. Not that the news was of any comfort to me, the one time I'd been there I'd gotten lost immediately. 

I started walking around aimlessly, and I was sure I would soon give into despair if I didn't run right into someone's body.

"Rey!"

His arms came around me to steady me and I found a pair of kind, chocolate eyes looking at me, clear relief painted all over his face.

"What happened to you?" Poe asked taking in my wet and dishevelled aspect. "Come on, let's get out of here first."

I barely remembered the way back to the dorm, Poe tried to put his arm around my shoulders suggesting I should lean on him, but I rejected his help. Truth was, as soon as I'd stepped in the forest the events of the previous night had caught up with me and I was feeling extremely tired.

He told me about how, even though it hadn’t been easy, they had all managed to escape. Once they had reconvened in the dorms and didn’t see me coming after a while, they’d decided to separate to look for me. I was grateful for their interest in my wellbeing, and a little touched about their worry, I wasn’t used to it. They’d spent the whole night looking for me, it was almost dawn.

I told him about the chase up the cliff and my jump, but I didn’t explain what had just happened in the cavern, I somehow felt he wouldn’t understand. To be honest, I barely did it myself.

“I don’t know what happened to me in that park,” I whispered once we got to the dorms, “that crystal… it affected me somehow, I acted like a lunatic, I would never be so irresponsible to put everyone in danger, I’m so sorry, please you have to believe me.”

“Rey, calm down,” he replied with a smile, “whatever happened out there it was totally worth it, we stopped them, _you_ stopped them! There must be complete chaos inside the order right now, I wish I could see it.” 

Wow, Poe definitely had his own view of how to carry on missions.

Outside my dorm door Finn, Rose and Paige were waiting for us, following a text Poe had sent once he had found me, they'd rushed to check if I was all right. Again, I was… touched.

Once in my room, I run through a summarised version of the events of the night and how sorry I was for what had happened, again, I was surprised they didn't blame me for any of it. Even Finn, who didn't knew about my strange abilities before, was pretty cool about it, saying that even though he barely had any memories of his month in the Order, he knew he'd witnessed some crazy stuff and nothing I could do would push him away. 

“If the crystal was their mysterious weapon, and I’m inclined to believe it was, we stopped them from doing something inconceivable. This calls for celebration!” Poe said after we'd discussed for a while.

“Seriously?” I asked incredulous, I just wanted to shower and sleep for the next three weeks.

“Of course, you’ve barely seen Naboo, you’ll have fun with us, you’ll see," Paige patted my leg affectionately. “By the way, where is the crystal now?”

“I have no idea,” I replied a little dejected but also relieved, “I must have lost it during the fall.”

“Never mind, we probably want to try to look for it, but as long as the Order doesn’t have it that’s fine," Paige replied.

"But this gives us a perfect excuse to go to Maz's tonight," Poe added excited. 

"Maz?"

"It's a local bar, a pretty chilled place for normal people, nothing like that lair of vultures, Canto Bight. I'm never stepping foot in that place again," Rose replied slightly disgusted, and I was suddenly curious about this place she wanted to avoid.

"I wouldn't say the people who hang out at Maz's Castle are exactly normal, I know that all sorts of shady deals go on in there. During my short time in the Order I remember we were actively discouraged to frequent the place," Finn said.

"And this is exactly the reason why we should go," Rose argued, no spoiled assholes can usually be found there. "You'll like it, you'll see," she added turning towards me, "I've only been there a couple of times and loved the atmosphere, I've also seen the old mechanic lab lead hang out there, maybe we will be able to run into him and ask him about the course."

"Also," Poe added, "Finn is right about the shady business side of the place, Maz is well known for her ability to procure any kind of peculiar item one might need, if someone found the crystal and tried to sell or get rid of it, 100% that's the place they went to."

"Are you saying she is a… smuggler?"

"Well… she doesn't really like that word, she doesn't just deal in objects, even services and people… she's a vast network of connections."

"Fine," Finn replied, "but I still want a drink and let loose, after last night we all need it." 

Everyone voiced their agreement and l found myself nodding alongside them. After that they all went to get some sleep, Poe was the last one to head to the door and, before he left, he turned around and hugged me, taking me completely by surprise.

“I’m so glad you’re one of us, Rey,” he said before stepping away and leaving me alone on the threshold.

I was... one of them? I’d never been one of anything before and this, for all its complications and dangers, felt right, I liked it.

Feeling really happy for the first time since I arrived in Naboo, I closed the door and went to get some rest.

 

* * *

 

 

Ben Solo was sitting in a corner of the bar, nursing his non-alcoholic drink, trying to analyse for the hundred time the events of the previous night. 

Everything had been running according to plan, the new recruits had showed up ready for the ceremony to start on time, the crystal was there, more powerful than ever, so much so that only his extensive training had allowed him to keep his head straight. It was finally time to test its powers on such a large scale for the first time. 

And then… everything had crashed into thin air. 

The crystal had recognised another strong force wielder in the crowd, and they were strong indeed… the crystal had flown directly into their hands with no uncertainty. But this also meant they were untrained, the power of the crystal completely taking over their will, making them jump off that cliff.

That person, he thought they might be a woman, but could've even been a small man, it wasn't the first time he made the wrong assumption, most people looked tiny compared to him.

Anyway, no trace was found of that person nor the crystal at the bottom of the cliff. He'd sent people looking, he'd even gone himself since he was the only one with a strong enough affinity to the crystal to have a chance to spot it even if hidden, but nothing came of it and he wasn't really surprised.

But the Great Leader… he'd been surprised indeed, Ben had never seen him as furious before, he knew that the crystal was vital for the success of his plan.

He had about three months to find it before the next possible ceremony date. The crystal and the force wielder. He couldn't and wouldn't fail the Great Leader again. This was the first time and he would make sure it was also the last, not only failure was inadmissible for him, he had also many enemies in the Order who were just waiting for his misstep.

"You know what you need?" Hux said sitting next to him after his n-th beer refill.

"I don't, but I'm sure you're about to tell me," Ben replied mildly annoyed.

"You really need to get laid," he said with a sardonic smile, "when was the last time anyway? I've never seen you with a woman, that must be the reason for all this pent-up frustration of yours."

Phasma froze at those words, they all knew Hux was the only one with a position high enough in the Order to dare to talk to him like that, and he did, any chance he got. 

Ben just looked at him without deigning him of a reply.

"You said you wouldn't be able to recognise the other force wielder because of the crystal's strong influence covering both your signatures, but maybe you just need a good fuck to make your… sensors… start working again."

"The Order comes first," Phasma interjected, before Hux could add anything else, "but I agree that we all need to let loose sometimes to keep our sanity, when it doesn't interfere with our duties of course," she added, always the rule follower.

She was trying to diffuse tension, everyone knew that there wasn't much love between the two highest ranking members of the Order.

Ben was about to reply for them to mind their own business when the door of the bar opened, and a group of students entered the room. He would've ignored them if it wasn't for two people he recognised.

The first to enter the bar was Dameron, known member of the Rebel Alliance, he'd had a few runs in with him during the years, nothing he couldn't easily handle, the guy was powerless in addition to being an idiot.

But the girl smiling at him, he recognised her immediately, was his student. What was her name? Andrews.

Rey Amdrews.

It wasn't really normal for him to remember students’ names and faces after just one week of classes, but her… he'd noticed from the first moment their eyes had met.

She was pretty, she definitely was… he thought, looking at her long jeans-cladded legs, tiny waist and beautiful smile, but there was something else. It wasn't his habit to have this kind of thoughts about his own students, but he couldn't help being attracted to her on some kind of deep level.

Hux followed his stare and grinned like a hyena.

"I see you're not dead after all," he said patting his back and annoying him further, "she's quite pretty, go fuck her and see, tomorrow your performance problems will be gone and you'll be again the mighty Kylo Ren everyone respect and fear," barely concealed mockery in his voice.

"Don't call me with that name when I'm wearing civilian clothes," he grunted low, "and drop it, that's a student of my course."

"And is that a problem?" Hux replied, raising his eyebrows, "I've fucked plenty of first years, some in modules where I was TA, we are technically still students ourselves."

While he didn't believe for one second that Armitage was as successful with women as he liked to brag, and while it was technically true that his PhD hadn't been awarded yet, he was still a lecturer on that course, his own moral code would never allow him something like that… as tempting as it was.

"I recognise that one," Phasma said, interrupting his inner debate, "Stevens, he was a recruit two years ago," she was pointing at a guy in the same group of people as Rey, "control faded on him and he escaped after a month or so."

"There's always a few of these cases every year," Hux replied dismissively, "that's why we have a probation period and that's why we need the crystal, Solo's reach is not perfect," he added with an air of superiority and a seemingly innocent smile, "still, bold of him to come back."

"And he's fraternising with a notorious Resistance member," Phasma pointed out.

" Ah right… maybe Dameron is trying to recruit him, fishing for information he won't find anyway. But look Solo, your girl is also part of the group, maybe you should keep a closer look on her, in class of course," he added, laughing lewdly.

Ben didn't reply, but a part of him thought maybe there was some sense in that reasoning. Or, maybe, this just granted him the perfect excuse to do what he had wished to do all along.

He was going to keep an eye on Rey Andrews.


	6. Chapter 6

I'm sorry, this is not a new chapter, just a message to say that I was waiting for the movie to come out before going on with this fic, so I wouldn't write myself into a dead end.

  
**SPOILERS (don't read if you haven't watched the movie yet)**

  
Well, the movie came out, and I'm so heartbroken I can't either read or write anything for this franchise at the moment.   
I'm sorry :(  
If I ever get the will power to write again, I'm going to delete this and add a new chapter.

We could've had it all, and for one glorious minute we did.  
May the force be with us all.


End file.
